title: Prognostic factors for recurrence-free survival in patients with HER2-positive early-stage breast cancer treated with adjuvant trastuzumab.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The objective of this study was to identify prognostic factors affecting the recurrence-free survival (RFS) in patients who received a 52-week trastuzumab therapy for HER2-positive early stage breast cancer (EBC).
  
  
  METHODS
  The medical records of all patients with EBC from 10 centers were analyzed. Pathologic and clinical tumor characteristics were evaluated in 424 female patients who received 52 weeks of adjuvant trastuzumab for HER2-positive EBC. Survival was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate analyses of RFS were performed with the log-rank test. Independent prognostic and predictive factors affecting RFS were assessed by Cox regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Median follow-up time was 33.1 months (range 9.2-75.9 months). 3-year RFS and overall survival were 87 and 97%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, patients aged 70 years or over (p = 0.017, relative risk (RR) 2.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19-6.13), patients with > 9 positive lymph nodes (p = 0.001, RR 2.52, 95% CI 1.42-4.46), and those with progesterone receptor-negative tumors (p = 0.006, RR 2.33, 95% CI 1.27-4.27) had worse RFS.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In spite of a 52-week adjuvant trastuzumab treatment, classic poor prognostic factors for invasive EBC remained as such in patients with HER2-positive EBC.
authors.affiliation: Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Gazi University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Onder
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Tonyali
authors.forename: Ugur
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Coskun
authors.forename: Nur
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sener
authors.forename: Mevlude
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Inanc
authors.forename: Tulay
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Akman
authors.forename: Arife
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ulas
authors.forename: Dogan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yazilitas
authors.forename: Oznur
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Bal
authors.forename: Mehmet
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kucukoner
authors.forename: Nuriye
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yildirim Ozdemir
authors.forename: Umut
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Demirci
authors.forename: Yusuf
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gunaydin
authors.forename: Ramazan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yildiz
authors.forename: Halit
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Karaca
authors.forename: Olcun
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Umit Unal
authors.forename: Mahmut
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gumus
authors.forename: Mustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Benekli
authors.forename: Suleyman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Buyukberber
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000401:mortality*; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000378:metabolism / Q000401:mortality* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015995:Prevalence; D011379:Prognosis; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D000068878:Trastuzumab; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D000068878:Trastuzumab; C508053:ERBB2 protein, human